Here these topics will
be considered in more detail and group/classroom
activities will be suggested.

1. What is
censorship?

Censorship can be
broadly defined as the suppression of knowledge or
ideas. Used by Governments or
organisations to prevent the circulation of
material. In wartime information about troop
activities, future battle plans etc., will be
censored. In peacetime censorship can be more
problematic and controversial.

Activity: List the
elements of films that that you would want to
censor? E.g. in terms of language, plot, subject
matter. This should help determine the main areas
and features of censorship. Give reasons why we
would censor films - e.g. to protect minors,
minority groups, etc. Give reasons why we would
object to or restrict censorship - e.g. issue of
free speech.

2.
Censorship in the cinema

We can now compare how
films have come to be censored in real life with the
elements we have identified in the activity above.

In the US with the
coming of sound in 1927 there was a call for
stricter censorship. The Production or Hays Code of
film classification was introduced in 1934 to
control the depiction of religious groups, foreign
countries, foreigners, sexual and criminal activity,
and other repellent subjects. This held sway until
the early 1950s. In 1968 a classification system was
established that all Hollywood movies adhere to on a
voluntary basis. It is run by the MPAA (Motion
Picture Association of America).

In Britain we have the
BBFC (British Board of Film Classification). This
also classifies films and certifies them for public
distribution.

Group Activity: Discuss
whether classification is just a self-imposed method
of censorship. Is it there for the benefit of the
motion picture industry, government or viewer? What
groups or organisations have most influence on it?
What pressures are on it? Is classification
paternalistic, patronising and a reflection or
establishment of standards.

Activity: What films or
film sequences have you seen that you think should
have been censored. Did these elements shock or
influence you in any way?

Effects of media on the
audience have mainly been conducted in relation to
TV audiences and focussed on the issue of violence.
For example, in laboratory conditions children have
been shown violent film clips and then their
behaviour has been monitored afterwards to see if
they act more aggressively than a control group that
has not been shown violent films.

Content Analysis has
also been employed to count the number of acts of
violence, violent language and related actions in a
specific film. A high score would rate the film as
being more likely to inspire aggressive reactions
than a low scoring film.

Polls and surveys, and
test screenings are another means of determining how
an audience responds to a film.

Group Activity: View a
film sequence and note the incidents of violence
contained in it. Afterwards discuss the pros and
cons of this content analysis in relation to
censorship. Critics claim that such studies are
limited as they do not consider the wider context of
the film and its effect on the viewer. A direct
cause and effect - viewing a violent film causing
aggressive behaviour - has been very hard to
establish on a scientific basis.

The BBFC notes that it
gives more allowance to Art House movies, or films
that bring important issues to a wider audience e.g.
Spielbergís Schindlerís List or Saving
Private Ryan. It also gives different
allowances to different genres - e.g. it will except
more violence in a cartoon than a crime movie.

Group Activity:

Group 1. Imagine you
are making a Horror film Group 2. Imagine you are
making a Romantic Drama film Group 3. Imagine you are
making a Crime Drama film Group 4. Imagine you are
making a Disaster film

What elements would you
need to feature in your groupís chosen film genre?
What areas of censorship would you have to consider?
E.g. in terms of nudity, sexual activity, language,
presentation of criminal acts, violence, moral
message of the movie, the target audience. How would
you tackle the issue of censorship?

This activity shows
that different genres have different audience
expectations.

5. The
context of censorship and the role of social change

Beyond the film itself
we have to consider its wider social context.

For example, after a
terrorist outrage - such as immediately after 9/11
film makers avoided making films that touched on
this topic. E.g. Spielberg deleted a reference to
terrorism in his re-release of E.T. yet in
2005 released his version of The War of the
Worlds which depicted the destruction of US
society by Ďaliení warfare.

On an informal basis we
employ individual and collective censorship. As an
artist/ film maker we might never want to make a
film that would feature a subject repugnant to
ourselves or we might meet resistance from financial
backers if we did try to make such a film. The
commercial basis of film making and the need for box
office success can dictate and censor the type of
films than can or cannot be made.

In the 1950 and 1960s
the affluent/permissive society broke down many
traditional barriers and previously taboo topics
became the subject of films. Violence and nudity
became more graphic. The innuendoes of the Carry
On films gave why to the more explicit Confessions
films of the 1970s.

Activity: What
film topics would you like to censor now? Is free
speech and censorship compatible?

6.
Censorship and technology

New technology presents
new problems for film censorship. The perfection of
special effects especially with the introduction of
digital technology in the early 1990s means that all
forms of graphic violence can be depicted.
Furthermore, the technological means of delivering
films to an audience has evolved. Video technology
of the 1980s brought about the fears of video
nasties being viewed in the home. Similarly video
games portraying graphic violence and scenarios have
created equally powerful moral panics. Currently the
Internet has prompted fears about the easy
distribution of uncensored films and other
visual material to people in their homes.

ACTIVITY: Is
censorship necessary or possible in the future? Is
classification alone able to Ďcontrolí what we view?